Our Genealogy Helper
Introduction ...
We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:
- That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
- We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
- On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.
By learning about W J Ranch Colonia (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.
As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for W J Ranch Colonia. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.
Neighboring Counties ...
When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.
For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.
So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived: their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
W J Ranch Colonia is located in San Patricio County.
To see how the shape of Texas' counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of San Patricio County: Aransas, Bee, Jim Wells, Live Oak, Nueces & Refugio.
Below are the counties that are near W J Ranch Colonia. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to W J Ranch Colonia:
- San Patricio County (The home county of W J Ranch Colonia)
- The following are listed by their distance from W J Ranch Colonia, with the one closest to W J Ranch Colonia listed first.
- Morgan Farm
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Morgan Farm is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan Farm
- Morgan Farm has also been known as:
- Morgan Farm Colonia
- Del Sol - Loma Linda
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Del Sol - Loma Linda is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Del Sol - Loma Linda
- Rancho Chico
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Rancho Chico is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rancho Chico
- Sinton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Odem
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Odem is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odem
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,380 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Odem <1>
- Saint Paul
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Saint Paul is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
- Edroy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Taft Southwest
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Taft Southwest is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taft Southwest
- Taft
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Taft is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taft
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,886 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Taft <1>
- San Patricio
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- San Patricio is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Patricio
- Population from the 2020 Census: 366 people
- Doyle
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Doyle is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doyle
- Gregory
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Aransas County
- The following are listed by their distance from W J Ranch Colonia, with the one closest to W J Ranch Colonia listed first.
- Aransas Pass
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Copano Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Copano Village is located in Aransas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copano Village
- Rockport
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Bee County
- The following are listed by their distance from W J Ranch Colonia, with the one closest to W J Ranch Colonia listed first.
- Tynan
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Skidmore
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Blanconia
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Blanconia is located in Bee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanconia
- Former names for Blanconia:
- Dark Corners
- Pull Tight
- Clareville ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Clareville is located in Bee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clareville
- Beeville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Blue Berry Hill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Blue Berry Hill is located in Bee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Berry Hill
- Jim Wells County
- The following are listed by their distance from W J Ranch Colonia, with the one closest to W J Ranch Colonia listed first.
- Sandia
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Casa Blanca
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Casa Blanca is located in Jim Wells County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casa Blanca
- Pernitas Point
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Pernitas Point is located in Jim Wells County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pernitas Point
- K-Bar Ranch
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- K-Bar Ranch is located in Jim Wells County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for K-Bar Ranch
- Orange Grove
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Alfred - South La Paloma
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Westdale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Westdale is located in Jim Wells County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westdale
- Water City Estates
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Water City Estates is located in Jim Wells County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Water City Estates
- Water City Estates has also been known as:
- Water City Estates Colonia
- Live Oak County
- Dinero
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Nueces County
- The following are listed by their distance from W J Ranch Colonia, with the one closest to W J Ranch Colonia listed first.
- Calallen
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Viola
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Viola is located in Nueces County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viola
- Bluntzer
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Bluntzer is located in Nueces County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluntzer
- North San Pedro
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- North San Pedro is located in Nueces County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North San Pedro
- Robstown
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Sandy Hollow - Escondidas
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Corpus Christi
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Banquete
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Spring Garden - Terra Verde
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Tierra Grande
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Tierra Grande is located in Nueces County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tierra Grande
- Rancho Banquete
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Rancho Banquete is located in Nueces County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rancho Banquete
- La Paloma - Lost Creek
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Refugio County
- The following are listed by their distance from W J Ranch Colonia, with the one closest to W J Ranch Colonia listed first.
- Black Point ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Black Point is located in Refugio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Point
- Bayside
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Woodsboro
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Refugio
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to W J Ranch Colonia, see our County-by-County Page for W J Ranch Colonia.
Cemeteries Near W J Ranch Colonia ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of W J Ranch Colonia.
This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.
Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for W J Ranch Colonia - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for W J Ranch Colonia covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from W J Ranch Colonia, with the one closest to W J Ranch Colonia listed first.
- Sinton Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinton Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Sinton Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the west of Sinton.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1076319 <2>
- Evergreen Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Evergreen Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the north of Odem.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #3488 <2>
- Eternal Rest Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Heaven's Acre Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- San Pedro Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Bethel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- St. Paul Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Edroy Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Bellevue Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Rosita Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Old Papalote Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Papalote Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Continue List (58 more) ...
- Old San Patricio Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Memorial Park Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Memorial Park Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Memorial Park Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<3> to the north of Robstown.
- The Memorial Park Cemetery has also been known as:
- Robstown Memorial Park Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #6410 <2>
- Robstown Memorial Park
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
Nearby Communities in 1895 ...
We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<4>
While we didn't find W J Ranch Colonia in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of W J Ranch Colonia.
These communities are listed based on their distance from W J Ranch Colonia, with the one closest to W J Ranch Colonia listed first.
- Sinton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Viola
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Viola is located in Nueces County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viola
- Papalote
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Papalote is located in Bee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Papalote
- San Patricio
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- San Patricio is located in San Patricio County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Patricio
- Population from the 2020 Census: 366 people
- Nueces
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Nueces is located in Nueces County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nueces
- Portland
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Gregory
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Mathis
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Corpus Christi
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Banquete
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Skidmore
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Driscoll
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (5 more) ...
- Lagarto
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Lagarto is located in Live Oak County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lagarto
- Agua Dulce
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Refugio
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around W J Ranch Colonia. See our List of 1890's Communities around W J Ranch Colonia.
Newspapers Published in W J Ranch Colonia ...
An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).
To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.
Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 89 newspapers that have been published in the area around W J Ranch Colonia.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of W J Ranch Colonia, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for W J Ranch Colonia.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.
To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to W J Ranch Colonia:
- Websites specific to Texas
- Pages specific to San Patricio County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Aransas County
- Bee County
- Jim Wells County
- Live Oak County
- Nueces County
- Refugio County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Texas
Footnotes ...
| <1> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <2> | The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- W J Ranch Colonia) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <4> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about W J Ranch Colonia, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |